Themes

Description

Current dogma states that gene silencing in plants is solely determined by the extent of complementarity between the small RNA and the target gene. However, we have obtained evidence that contextual factors beyond complementarity play a large role in dictating the silencing outcome (or efficacy) of a miRNA: target gene interaction. These factors could include target site accessibility or RNA binding proteins, which have been shown to be relevant in animal systems, or other currently unappreciated mechanisms.

We have projects that are trying to understand what these factors are. As this underpins how miRNAs recognise and regulate their targets, understanding these principles is required for both biotechnological and theoretically aspects of miRNA biology.